Monitoring and administration utilities provided on the BIG/ip Controller

The BIG/ip platform provides several utilities for monitoring and administration of the BIG/ip Controller. You can monitor system statistics, as well as statistics specific to virtual servers and nodes, such as the number of current connections, and the number of packets processed since the last reboot.

The BIG/ip platform provides the following monitoring and configuration and administration utilities:

BIG/pipeIf you type certain BIG/pipe commands, such as bigpipe vip or bigpipe node, and use the show keyword in the command, the command displays statistical information about the elements that you configure using that command.

BIG/statThis utility is provided specifically for statistical monitoring of virtual servers, nodes, NATs, SNATs, and services. One benefit of using BIG/stat is that it allows you to customize the display of statistical information.

BIG/topBIG/top provides statistical monitoring. You can set a refresh interval, and you can specify a sort order.

SyslogSyslog is the standard UNIX system logging utility, which monitors critical system events, as well as configuration changes made on the BIG/ip Controller.

BIG/storeBIG/store is a database that contains various configuration information for the BIG/ip Controller.

Using the BIG/pipe command utility as a monitoring tool

Using the BIG/pipe utility, you can view information about the BIG/ip Controller itself, as well as elements such as virtual servers, virtual addresses, virtual ports, nodes, and node addresses. Typically, the BIG/pipe utility provides the following statistics:

Current number of connections

Maximum number of concurrent connections

Total number of connections since the last system reboot

Total number of bits (inbound, outbound, total)

Total number of packets (inbound, outbound, total)

Monitoring the BIG/ip Controller

The bigpipe summary command displays performance statistics for the BIG/ip Controller itself. This display summary includes current usage statistics, such as the amount of time a BIG/ip Controller has been running since the last reboot. Type the following command:

bigpipe summary

The performance statistics display in the format shown in Figure 6.1 (the output has been truncated for this example).

Table 6.1 contains descriptions of each individual statistic included in the summary display screen.

BIG/pipe monitoring statistics

Statistic

Description

total uptime

Total time elapsed since the BIG/ip Controller was last booted.

total uptime (secs)

Total uptime displayed in seconds.

total # connections

Total number of connections handled.

total # pkts

Total number of packets handled.

total # bits

Total number of bits handled.

total # pkts (inbound)

Total number of incoming packets handled.

total # bits (inbound)

Total number of incoming bits handled.

total # pkts (outbound)

Total number of outgoing packets handled.

total # bits (outbound)

Total number of outgoing bits handled.

error no nodes available

The number of times the BIG/ip Controller tries to make a connection to a node, but no nodes are available.

tcp port deny

The number of times a client attempted to connect to an unauthorized TCP port on the BIG/ip Controller (unauthorized port and source IP are logged in the syslog).

udp port deny

The number of times a client attempted to connect to an unauthorized UDP port on the BIG/ip Controller (unauthorized port and source IP are logged in the syslog).

vip tcp port deny

The number of times a client attempted to connect to an unauthorized TCP port on a virtual address (unauthorized port and source IP are logged in the syslog).

vip udp port deny

The number of times a client attempted to connect to an unauthorized UDP port on a virtual address (unauthorized port and source IP are logged in the syslog).

max connections deny

The total number of connections denied because the maximum number of connections allowed was exceeded.

vip duplicate syn ssl

The number of duplicate connection attempts to existing SSL connections from the same client.

vip duplicate syn wrong dest

The number of duplicate connection attempts from the same client (address and port combination) to a different virtual server.

vip duplicate syn node down

The number of duplicate connection attempts to a server that is down when a connection to the server was made previously.

vip maint mode deny

The number of times a connection to a virtual server was denied while the BIG/ip Controller is in maintenance mode.

virtual addr max connections deny

The number of virtual address connections dropped because the maximum number of connections was exceeded.

virtual path max connections deny

The number of virtual path connections dropped because the maximum number of connections was exceeded.

vip non syn

The number of packets received which are not connection requests, and are destined to a virtual address, but not a valid virtual server (port).

error vip fragment no port

The number of IP fragments for which there is no port.

error vip fragment no conn

The number of IP fragments for which there is no connection.

error standby shared drop

The number of packets destined to the shared IP address in a redundant system that is received and ignored by the standby system.

dropped inbound

The total number of inbound packets dropped by the BIG/ip Controller.

dropped outbound

The total number of outbound packets dropped by the BIG/ip Controller.

reaped

The total number of connections that timed-out, and are deleted by the BIG/ip Controller.

ssl reaped

The total number of SSL session ID records that timed-out, and are closed by the BIG/ip Controller.

persist reaped

The total number of persistence records that timed-out, and are closed by the BIG/ip Controller.

udp reaped

The total number of UDP connections that timed-out, and are closed by the BIG/ip Controller.

malloc errors

The number of times a connection could not be created because the system is low on memory.

mem pool total

The total amount of memory available in all combined memory pools.

mem pool used

The total amount of memory, in all combined memory pools, in use by the BIG/ip Controller.

mem percent used

The total percentage of memory in use by all combined memory pools.

Viewing the status of the interface cards

The bigpipe interface command displays the current status and the settings for external and internal interface cards. You can also use the bigpipe interface command to view information for a specific interface card, using the following command syntax:

interface <ifname>

Monitoring virtual servers, virtual addresses, and services

You can use different variations of the bigpipe vip command, as well as the bigpipe port command, to monitor information about virtual servers, virtual addresses, and services managed by the BIG/ip Controller.

Displaying information about virtual servers and virtual addresses

The bigpipe vip command displays the status of virtual servers (up, down, unchecked, or disabled), the current number of connections to each virtual server, and the status of the member nodes that are included in each virtual server mapping. The status for individual member nodes includes whether the node is up, down, unchecked, or disabled, and also includes the cumulative count of packets and bits received and sent by the node on behalf of the virtual server. The BIG/ip Controller displays the statistics as shown in Figure 6.2.

If you want to view statistical information about one or more specific virtual servers, simply include the virtual servers in the bigpipe vip command as shown below:

bigpipe vip <virt addr>:<port>... <virt addr>:<port>

If you want to view statistical information about traffic going to one or more virtual addresses, specify only the virtual address information in the command:

bigpipe vip <virt addr>... <virt addr>

Displaying information about services

The bigpipe port command allows you to display information about specific virtual ports managed by the BIG/ip Controller. You can use the command to display information about all virtual services, or you can specify one or more particular virtual services.

To view information about all virtual services, use the following syntax:

bigpipe port

To view statistical information about one or more specific virtual services, simply include the service names or port numbers as shown below:

bigpipe port <port>... <port>

Monitoring nodes and node addresses

The bigpipe node command displays the status of all nodes configured on the BIG/ip Controller. The information includes whether or not the specified node is up, down, disabled, or unchecked, and the number of cumulative packets and bits sent and received by each node on behalf of all virtual servers. The BIG/ip Controller displays the statistical information as shown in Figure 6.3.

If you want to view statistical information about one or more specific nodes, simply include the nodes in the bigpipe node command as shown below:

bigpipe node <node addr>:<port>... <node addr>:<port>

If you want to view statistical information about traffic going to one or more node addresses, specify only the node address information in the command:

bigpipe vip <node addr>... <node addr>

Monitoring NATs

The bigpipe nat show command displays the status of the NATs configured on the BIG/ip Controller. The information includes the number of cumulative packets and bits sent and received by each node on behalf of all virtual servers. Use the following command to display the status of all NATs included in the configuration:

bigpipe nat show

Use the following syntax to display the status of one or more selected NATs:

Monitoring SNATs

The bigpipe snat show command displays the status of the SNATs configured on the BIG/ip Controller. The information includes connections and global SNAT settings. Use the following bigpipe command to show SNAT mappings:

bigpipe snat [<SNAT addr>] [...<SNAT addr>] show

bigpipe snat show

Use the following command to show the current SNAT connections:

bigpipe snat [<SNAT addr>] [...<SNAT addr>] dump [ verbose ]

bigpipe snat dump [ verbose ]

The optional verbose keyword provides more detailed output.

The following command prints the global SNAT settings:

bigpipe snat globals show

Working with the BIG/stat utility

BIG/statTM is a utility that allows you to quickly view the status of the following elements:

Virtual servers

Services

Nodes

Network address translations (NATs)

You can customize the BIG/stat utility statistics display. For example, you can customize your output to display statistics for a single element, or for selected elements. You can set the display to automatically update at time intervals you specify.

The bigstat command accepts one or more options, which allow you to customize the statistical display. When you use the bigstat command without specifying any options, the BIG/stat utility displays the list of virtual servers, services, nodes, NATs, and SNATs only one time. The basic command syntax is:

bigstat [ options...]

The following table, Table 6.2, describes the options that you can use in the bigstat command.

The bigstat command options

Option

Description

-bigip

Displays totals for the BIG/ip Controller overall.

-c <count>

Sets the interval at which new information is displayed.

-h and -help

Displays the help options.

-nat

Displays network address table (NAT) entries only.

-no_viptot

Removes virtual server totals from the display.

-no_nodetot

Removes node totals from the display.

-node

Displays nodes only.

-port

Displays ports only.

-v

Displays version information.

-vip

Displays virtual servers only.

Working with the BIG/top utility

BIG/topTM is a real-time statistics display utility. The display shows the date and time of the latest reboot and lists activity in bits, bytes, or packets. Similar to BIG/stat, the BIG/top utility accepts options which allow you to customize the display of information. For example, you can set the interval at which the data is refreshed, and you can specify a sort order. The BIG/top displays the statistics as shown in the following figure, Figure 6.5.

Using BIG/top command options

The bigtop command uses the syntax below, and it supports the options outlined in Table 6.3:

bigtop [options...]

BIG/top command options

Option

Description

-bytes

Displays counts in bytes (the default is bits).

-conn

Sorts by connection count (the default is to sort by byte count).

-delay <value>

Sets the interval at which data is refreshed (the default is four seconds).

-delta

Sorts by count since last sample (the default is to sort by total count).

-help

Displays BIG/top help.

-nodes <value>

Sets the number of nodes to print (the default is to print all nodes).

-nosort

Disables sorting.

-once

Prints the information once and exits.

-pkts

Displays the counts in packets (the default is bits).

-scroll

Disables full-screen mode.

-vips <value>

Sets the number of virtual servers to print (the default is to print all virtual servers).

Using runtime commands in BIG/top

Unless you specified the -once option, the BIG/top utility continually updates the display at the rate indicated by the -delay option, and you can also use the following runtime options at any time:

The u option cycles through the display modes; bits, bytes, and packets.

The q option quits the BIG/top utility.

Working with the Syslog utility

The BIG/ip Controller supports logging via the Syslog utility. The logs are generated automatically, and saved in user-specified files. These logs contain all changes made to the BIG/ip Controller configuration, such as those made with the bigpipe vip command, or other BIG/pipe commands, as well as all critical events that occur in the system.

Note: You can configure the Syslog utility to send email or activate pager notification based on the priority of the logged event.

The Syslog log files track system events based on information defined in the /etc/syslog.conf file. You can view the log files in a standard text editor, or with the less file page utility.

Sample log messages

The following sample log messages give you an idea of how the Syslog utility tracks events that are specific to the BIG/ip Controller.

Sample Syslog messages

Sample message

Description

bigd: allowing connections on port 20

A user specifically allowed connections on virtual port 20

bigd: node 192.168.1.1 detected up

The 192.168.1.1 node address was successfully pinged by the BIG/ip Controller

bigd: added service port 20 to node 192.168.1.1

A user defined a new node, 192.168.1.1:20.

kernel: security: port denial 207.17.112.254:4379 -> 192.168.1.1:23

A client was denied access to a specific port. The client is identified as coming from 207.17.112.254:4379, and the destination node is 192.168.1.1:23.

Removing and returning items to service

Once you have completed the initial configuration on the BIG/ip Controller, you may want to temporarily remove specific items from service for maintenance purposes. For example, if a specific network server needs to be upgraded, you may want to disable the nodes associated with that server, and then enable them once you finish installing the new hardware and bring the server back online.

If you specifically disable the nodes associated with the server, the BIG/ip Controller allows the node to go down only after all the current connections are complete. During this time, the BIG/ip Controller does not attempt to send new connections to the node. Although the BIG/ip Controller's monitoring features would eventually determine that the nodes associated with the server are down, specifically removing the nodes from service prevents interruptions on client connections.

You can remove the entire BIG/ip Controller from service, or you can remove the following individual items from service:

Virtual servers

Virtual addresses

Virtual ports

Nodes

Node addresses

Removing the BIG/ip Controller from service

The BIG/ip platform offers a Maintenance mode, which allows you to remove the BIG/ip Controller from network service. This is useful if you want to perform hardware maintenance, or make extensive configuration changes. When you activate Maintenance mode, the BIG/ip Controller no longer accepts connections to the virtual servers it manages. However, the existing connections are allowed to finish processing so that current clients are not interrupted.

The bigpipe maint command toggles the BIG/ip Controller into or out of Maintenance mode. The command syntax is simply:

bigpipe maint

If the BIG/ip Controller runs in Maintenance mode for less than 20 minutes and you return the machine to the normal service, the BIG/ip Controller quickly begins accepting connections. However, if the BIG/ip Controller runs in Maintenance mode for more than 20 minutes, returning the Controller to service involves updating all network ARP caches. This process can take a few seconds, but you can speed the process up by reloading the /etc/bigip.conf file using the following command:

bigpipe -f /etc/bigip.conf

Removing individual virtual servers, virtual addresses, and ports from service

The BIG/ip Controller also supports taking only selected virtual servers, addresses, or ports out of service, rather than removing the BIG/ip Controller itself from service. Each BIG/pipe command that defines virtual servers and their components supports enable and disable keywords, which allow you to remove or return the elements from service.

When you remove a virtual address or a virtual port from service, it affects all virtual servers associated with the virtual address or virtual port. Similarly, if you remove a node address from service, it affects all nodes associated with the node address.

Enabling and disabling virtual servers and virtual addresses

The bigpipe vip command allows you to enable or disable individual virtual servers, as well as virtual addresses. To enable or disable a virtual server, type the appropriate command:

bigpipe vip <virtual addr>:<virtual port> enable

bigpipe vip <virtual addr>:<virtual port> disable

To enable or disable a virtual address, type the appropriate command:

bigpipe vip <virtual addr> enable

bigpipe vip <virtual addr> disable

Enabling and disabling virtual ports

The bigpipe port command allows you to allow or deny traffic on a virtual port:

bigpipe port <virtual port> enable

bigpipe port <virtual port> disable

Removing individual nodes and node addresses from service

Enabling and disabling nodes and node addresses

The bigpipe node command allows you to enable or disable individual nodes, as well as node addresses.

To enable or disable a node, type the appropriate command:

bigpipe node <node addr>:<node port> enable

bigpipe node <node addr>:<node port> disable

To enable or disable a node address, type the appropriate command:

bigpipe node <node addr> enable

bigpipe node <node addr> disable

Viewing the currently defined virtual servers and nodes

When used without any parameters, BIG/pipe commands typically display currently configured elements. For example, the bigpipe vip command displays all currently defined virtual servers, and the bigpipe node command displays all nodes currently included in virtual server mappings. The following sections provide BIG/pipe command syntax associated with configuration. For information about using BIG/pipe commands for monitoring your existing system, refer to Appendix B, BIG/pipe commands.

Viewing system statistics and log files

The F5 Configuration utility allows you to view a variety of system statistics and system log files. Note that from each statistics screen, you can access property settings for individual virtual servers, nodes, IP addresses, and ports by selecting the individual item in the statistics table.

Viewing system statistics

The F5 Configuration utility allows you to view the following statistical information:

BIG/ip system statistics, including the elapsed time since the last system reboot, the number of packets and connections handled by the system, and the number of dropped connections.

IP filter statistics, including the number of packets accepted and rejected by individual IP filters.

Rate filter statistics, including the number of bits passed through, delayed, and dropped by individual rate filters.

Information about illegal connection attempts, such as the source IP addresses from which the illegal connection is initiated.

Statistics are displayed in real-time. You can specify the update frequency by setting an interval (in seconds), and then clicking Update.

Viewing log files

The F5 Configuration utility allows you to display three different log files:

The BIG/ip system log, which displays standard UNIX system events

The BIG/ip log, which displays information specific to BIG/ip events, such as defining a virtual server

The Pinger log, which displays status information determined by each node ping issued by the BIG/ip Controller

Printing the connection table

The BIG/pipe command line utility also offers a useful diagnostic tool that prints the list of current connections. Normally, the bigpipe dt command prints the client, virtual server, and node addresses. In Transparent Node Mode, the bigpipe dt command also prints the final destination address.

Changing passwords for the BIG/ip Controller

During the First-Time Boot utility, you define a password that allows remote access to the BIG/ip Controller, and you also define a password for the BIG/ip web server. You can change these passwords at any time.

Changing the BIG/ip Controller password

At the BIG/ip Controller command line prompt, log on as root user and use the passwd command.

At the password prompt, enter the password you want to use for the BIG/ip Controller and press Return.

To confirm the password, retype it and press Return.

Changing passwords and adding new user IDs for the BIG/ip web server

You can create new users for the BIG/ip web server, change a password for an existing user, or recreate the password file altogether, without actually going through the BIG/ip web server configuration process.

Creating new users and changing passwords for existing users

The following command creates a new user ID, or changes the password for an existing user ID. In place of the <username> parameter, enter the user ID for which you want to create a password:

/var/f5/httpd/bin/htpasswd /var/f5/httpd/basicauth/users \ <username>

Once you enter the command, you are prompted to enter the new password for the named user.

Creating a new password file

The following command recreates the BIG/ip web server password file, and defines one new user ID and password. In place of the <username> parameter, enter the user ID that you want to create:

Once you enter the command, you are prompted to enter the new password for the named user.

Working with the BIG/store database

The BIG/storeTM database holds certain configuration information for the BIG/ip Controller. Two utilities currently use the configuration stored in BIG/store: the State Mirroring daemon and sod. The bigdba utility is provided for loading configuration information into BIG/store. An additional default.txt file is included with the BIG/ip Controller which contains default information you can load into the BIG/store database.

Using bigdba

Use the bigdba utility to modify the BIG/store database. The bigdba utility allows you to create a database and insert and modify keys and values. All values are entered into BIG/store as strings.

Accessing and modifying the default database

The default BIG/store database is created when you run the First-Time Boot utility. To use bigdba from the command line run bigdba with the name of the database.

Using bigdba commands

Print the value stored at <name>. If name value is * (asterisk), all values stored under the current subkey are displayed

up

Back up one subkey

up <string>

Back up through subkey <string>

d <string>[*]

Delete value stored under current key <string>

<string> = <value>

Store <value> under name <string> within the current key

set confirm on

Confirm delete operations

set confirm off

Do not confirm deletions

set comments on

Show comments. By default, comments are off

set comments off

Do not show comments. By default, comments are off

dump <file>

Dumps the database to the file name specified

load <file>

Loads the database with the file specified

quit | q | EOF

Quits the bigdba utility

help | ?

Display the help text for the bigdba utility

Working with the default.txt file

The default.txt file documents the keys that are valid in the BIG/store database. This file is located at /var/f5/bigdb/default.txt. This text file, which can be loaded with the bigdba program, contains all the possible database keys, comments that document these keys, and the default values used by programs that run on the BIG/ip Controller.

Note: The values in the default.txt file are default values, several of the keys listed are not present in the BIG/store database.

The default.txt file is intended to serve as documentation only. Some of the records, such as those that represent IP addresses and port numbers, need to be set to values other than the default values for the system to work.

If you want to load default.txt into the BIG/store database, it is recommended that you dump the existing database to another text file. Make a copy of default.txt, and then edit the copy so that the records which are present in your dump file match the values contained in the default.txt file. After the values match, you can load the edited copy of default.txt.